Invest NI helps Co. Antrim company sow seeds of success

May 24, 2011

Ballymoney-based Moore Unidrill has secured £250,000 worth of new export business with support from Invest Northern Ireland.

Moore Unidrill develops and manufactures specialist seeding equipment for the agricultural and sportsturf sectors. Following an investment in research and development, the company created a new machine with enhanced seeding technology.

This new grass seeder is targeted at the agricultural grassland and sportsturf markets and was launched earlier this year. Moore Unidrill has already received a number of orders from customers in Great Britain, the Republic of Ireland and Germany. Invest NI offered Moore Unidrill over £28,000, part funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), towards the project.

Carol Keery, Invest NI’s Director of Innovation, Research and Technology, said: “This investment forms part of Moore Unidrill’s strategy to capitalise on new business opportunities in export markets. Central to this development strategy is an R&D project to develop a product which has substantial market potential.

“The company is already beginning to reap the benefits of its investment and the sales secured to date will help Moore Unidrill to build brand awareness and attract new international customers.”

Sam Moore, Managing Director of Moore Unidrill, added: “Support from Invest NI helped to accelerate our R&D activity, driving this project from initial idea through to final product and market launch within ten months. We have successfully developed a more efficient seeding method, which produces better results by reducing the space in between rows where weeds tend to grow.

“Our new technology has been very well received by farmers across the UK and Europe. Motivated by our success to date, we aim to expand on our customer base and generate additional sales in new export markets.”